The Twins’ frustration, including the ownership family of Carl Pohlad, over the land stalemate for a new ballpark is increasing daily, and it is by no means imminent that a ballpark will be built on the planned site near Target Center in downtown Minneapolis.

Meanwhile, Pohlad will get a first look at his 2007 team this weekend when he flies to Fort Myers, Fla., for spring training.

)Mike Leaf has coached the Winona State men’s basketball team to 52 consecutive victories, but he hasn’t been approached by the Gophers, who are seeking a new coach.

“The Big Ten, that’s pretty good size; that would be quite a jump up,” Leaf said. “I really haven’t given it much thought, to be honest. I’m focusing on our basketball team right now.”

Leaf, 45, attended Cotter High School and St. Mary’s University in Winona. This season, his Division II team embarrassed the Division I Gophers 69-64 in a November exhibition game at Williams Arena, and it probably would win if they played again.

When Gophers athletics director Joel Maturi was AD at the University of Denver and seeking a men’s basketball coach, he hired a fellow named Bo Ryan from Division III Wisconsin-Platteville. Maturi’s hire, however, was overruled by Denver administrators because they were not convinced a Division III coach was ready to succeed in Division I.

Ryan now coaches Division I Wisconsin, which is ranked No. 3 in the country.

Suppose the Gophers were to call Leaf.

“I can’t imagine them calling, to be honest,” Leaf said. “Rumor has it they’re going to try to get a bigger name in there.”

There is no bigger name in Winona right now than Mike Leaf.

) New Gophers football coach Tim Brewster has Murray Warmath, 94, who coached the Gophers to the 1961 and ’62 Rose Bowls, scheduled to visit spring practice this afternoon.

“What coach Warmath did in 1959 (last-place finish) and 1960 (first-place finish) is one of the most remarkable stories in sports, absolutely remarkable,” Brewster said. “I want to reconnect with history.”

) The Twins are trying to get a finalist from TV’s “American Idol” to sing the national anthem for their Metrodome opener April 2 against Baltimore. More than 40,000 tickets already have been sold, and the game will be a 48,000-seat sellout.

)Cole Aldrich, the 6-foot-11, 245-pound Kansas-bound Bloomington Jefferson basketball star, might feature his backward over-the-shoulder slam at the McDonald’s high school All-America dunk contest March 26 in Louisville, Ky. Aldrich, by the way, is the sixth Minnesotan to be named a McDonald’s All-American. The others are Khalid El-Amin, Kris Humphries, Joel Przybilla, Jim Petersen and Rick Rickert.

) WCCO-AM had about 55 affiliate stations when it owned the Twins’ broadcast rights, and new rights-holder KSTP-AM has nearly 70 affiliates – which is among the most in major league baseball. The Twins, who own the broadcasts, plan to add more affiliates in western Wisconsin.

) Howard Pulley basketball alums: Cam Rundles of DeLaSalle and Montana was named freshman of the year in the Big Sky Conference; Matt Janning of Watertown-Mayer and Northeastern was named freshman of the year in the Colonial Athletic Association; Romain Martin of Minneapolis North and Eastern Illinois was named co-freshman of the year in the Ohio Valley Conference; Jamar Diggs of DeLaSalle and Wayne State was named freshman of the year in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

) The top performance among ex-Gophers at their NFL pro day workout Monday was turned in by receiver Logan Payne, whose 4.46-second 40-yard dash caught the eye of the New York Giants, according to draftheadquarters.com.

) A full complement of 168 Wild fans signed up for a trip to Boston to watch the team play the Bruins on Thursday.

Charley Walters’ column appears Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. He can be reached at cwalters@pioneerpress.com.

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